| Librarians
Should Post This List as Required Reading for Business Patrons.
1. "Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without
Giving In," by Roger Fisher, William Ury and Bruce Patton.
This is the book that changed the face of negotiating, both
business and personal negotiating. It's compendium of well-tested strategies for resolving
any type of conflict. More important, it encourages a negotiating mindset that enables
both sides to get what they need, if not everything they might want. Instead of
negotiation as conflict (which, in spite of lip service to the contrary, is still the norm
today), the negotiation process can actually become the foundation of a mutually
beneficial ongoing relationship.
2. "The Art of War" by Tzu Sun.
On the other side of the coin, while business might not be
war, the rich insights of this 2,000 year-old classic are relevant to any situation in
which conflict might arise. That means any business situation, no matter how win/win we
might try to be.
3. "The One Minute Manager" by Kenneth Blanchard
and Spencer Johnson.
"The One Minute Manager" is so simple it's
brilliant, a basic text for anyone who manages other human beings, or anyone who simply
manages themselves, or tries to. With the longer and longer hours of the global economy,
the authors' take on balancing productivity against job (and life) satisfaction is more
pertinent today than it was when the book was first conceived. This is a book to be read
and re-read.
4. "Filling the Glass: The Skeptic's Guide to
Positive Thinking in Business" by Barry Maher.
The fourth spot on the list was first occupied by "The
Power of Positive Thinking," followed by several recent "feel-good"
bestsellers. Try defending any of them to today's cynical managers and entrepreneurs.
"Filling the Glass," however, trades "let's all think happy thoughts"
for a hardheaded, reality-based inspiration. With practical, effective strategies for
getting what you want in your career without sacrificing who you are, it's so much the
best of the breed that it's in a class by itself.
5. "The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing" by Jack
Trout and Al Ries.
Even business people who have nothing to do with marketing
have something to do with marketing. Those who don't understand the laws of marketing, no
matter what their position in the company, become an obstacle to those who do. "The
22 Immutable Laws" succinctly explains the rules of a game almost all of us are
playing in one form or another.
6. "Guerrilla Marketing" by Jay Conrad Levinson.
From the smallest Mom and Pop operation to the high tech
start-up to the largest Fortune 100 conglomerate, businesses of every size and description
can benefit from Levinson's recently updated classic. For those of us not directly
involved in marketing, "Guerrilla Marketing" is even more valuable for the
inventive, entrepreneurial mindset it engenders than its specific strategies and tactics.
That's why it's spawned a 30 book series, and enough blatant imitations to overburden the
most affluent library.
7. "What Color is Your Parachute?" by Richard
Nelson Bolles.
Even if you're never planning to look for another job, this
is an essential addition to your library. Like a parachute, it's there for you when all
else fails, or for when all else simply seems likely to fail. Whenever the thought of
changing jobs crosses the mind (as it always does at one point or another), this parachute
offers an invaluable reality check, providing the tools necessary to properly assess the
situation. So you don't jump when the plane isn't really going down. But so, when you do
have to jump, you're most likely to land safely back on solid ground.
From "Today's Librarian," Copyright, M.L. Jenson,
all rights reserved. |
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